


Veritas

by Axelrocks



Category: Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: F/M, Humor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-05
Updated: 2014-01-05
Packaged: 2017-12-31 14:01:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1032527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Axelrocks/pseuds/Axelrocks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On a run to a nearby shopping mall, Glenn thinks he's found out Daryl's biggest secret. Originally a one shot, but will most likely have another part.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Part One

"Westfield Shopping Mall," Daryl said aloud to the two men behind him as he pulled off the weeds that covered the large sign.

"Looks huge," Glenn commented and stepped next to the hunter. "I'm sure we'll find stuff we'll need in there."

"Clothes, for sure," Rick spoke up. "Maybe we can get our girls the latest styles." He gave his friends a smirk.

Daryl snorted and began heading towards the entrance. They were burning daylight standing out here talking and he wanted to get back to Carol before nightfall.

It had been almost a year since the fall of the Governor and the decision to leave the dreary prison. Together, the original group and Michonne had found another farmhouse in the middle of nowhere. Tyreese and Sasha had opted to stay behind and take charge of the prison with the Woodbury citizens.

At first, Rick had been weary but after putting up a large fence around the property, he warmed up to it. Plus, with all the ammo and guns they had scavenged over the months, they were more than prepared for anything.

The farmhouse also had a small cabin on the outskirts the large property and Daryl was quick to claim it as his own. The group was his family, but he still needed his space. The rest of the group, Rick, Carl, Judith, the Greene family, Glenn, Michonne and Carol were left to fit into the large house. Luckily, the house had enough rooms. Glenn and Maggie shared, as well as Hershel and Beth. Rick wanted his family near, so he shared with Carl and Judith. That left Carol bunking with Michonne.

It didn't take long, though, for Daryl to finally man-up and invite Carol to his isolated cabin. They had been on the verge of something for months now and he figured something needed to be done about it.

The little cabin had one room, a bathroom, a kitchen and a small sitting area with a couch. Daryl slept on the couch, while Carol took the bed. Much to her frustration.

"Soon." He'd mumble to himself when she'd walked into her room during the night.

The run to the mall had not really been a necessity, but more of a way to scope out the area around them. They had been surprised when they had found themselves in a small town. Glenn had suggested searching the mall, sure that they were tons of things inside that would be of use. The other two men had agreed.

"Should we split up?" Rick asked after they had scoped the first floor of the shopping center. It had looked like people hadn't wanted to spend their last moments inside of a mall.

"Sure!" Glenn answered, clearly excited to go exploring.

"Alright," the leader nodded. "Daryl why don't you look for any food. Maybe the food court has some canned stuff. I'll get clothing for the men and Glenn, for the women."

The Asian man rolled his eyes, but didn't argue. He was use to be given those types of jobs anyway.

"We'll meet here in about an hour, okay?" Rick looked at each man individually. With one finally nod from each of them; they all went their separate ways.  
\------------------------------------------------  
Forty-five minutes later, Daryl, with a bag full of canned foods, began heading back to the meet up spot. He passed a store and froze when he heard movement coming from it. Glancing up, he saw that it was one of those video stores. He set down the bag at the entrance and swung around his crossbow, but before he could take a step inside a bright light blinded him.

"Daryl?"

He was going to fuckin' kill the Korean.

"The hell you doin' in here?" He shouldered his bow and snapped. "There ain't anythin' in here we need."

Glenn at least had the decency to look sheepish. "I just wanted to take a look. I already dropped off a couple of bags of clothes earlier."

Daryl huffed, but followed his friend farther into the store.

"I use to love this store, you know." Glenn called over his shoulder and his flashlight bobbed along the shelves. "I'd come here at least once a week."

"What for?" Daryl eyed the rows of movies with disinterest. He had never been one to watch much television and instead had spent most of his time outdoors, hunting or getting away from his pa or brother.

The younger man shrugged. "Don't know. I just liked coming in here and looking at all the movies and stuff."

"I bet you loved all them Jackie Chan films." He smirked.

"Ha ha, very funny."

He chuckled quietly and stopped when he came to a row of posters. He began to flip through them, with his flashlight in one hand. He didn't even who or what was on most of them.

"What?" Glenn's surprised gasp caused him stop. "No way!" The Korean gasping.

"What the fuck you find?" Daryl growled and was about to go find his companion, but he was suddenly right there in front of him, a DVD case clutched tightly in his grasp.

"I think you have some explaining to do, Daryl. Or should I say," he glanced down at the case, his eyes narrowing. "Norman Reedus."

"The hell you talkin' about? Who the fuck is Norman Reedus?" He had never heard of that name in his life.

"You, apparently!" Glenn exclaimed and shoved the case into his face. "This looks exactly like you. Right down to the mole above his lip."

Daryl snatched at the movie and nearly dropped it in surprise. What the fuck? The guy on the cover, this Norman Reedus, did look like him.

"So," Glenn crossed his arms and smirked. "When were you going to tell us that you use to be in show business?"

"Cuz I fuckin' wasn't." He angrily shoved the movie at Glenn's chest and turned to walk away. "We gotta meet Rick in five, so hurry your ass up."

"Um, I wanted to get something for Maggie real quick. Can you tell Rick I'll be there in ten? I'll be quick."

Daryl rolled his eyes. Glenn and that damn girlfriend of his.

"Fine." He grumbled. "But ten minutes is all you get, got it?"

The younger man didn't say another word and took off running to God knows where. Probably Victoria Secret or some shit like that.  
\------------------------------------  
Twenty minutes later, all three of them were on the road and driving back to the farm. Glenn had returned with another full bag, but wouldn't tell them what was in it.

"Probably frilly panties and shit for Maggie." Daryl whispered to Rick as they made trips back and forth to the truck.

Rick had laughed and nodded.

The rest of the group greeted them when they pulled up and helped carry the bags inside. Glenn rushed off to the room he shared with Maggie and that only confirmed Daryl's suspicious.

"Everything go okay?" Carol was suddenly at his elbow, Judith in her arms.

"Fine." He said and ran a finger down the baby's soft cheek. "Everythin' go a'right, here?"

She nodded and smiled. "Yep. Beth and I planted some seeds in the garden earlier, so in a couple months we'll have some fresh vegetables."

"That's good."

Rick walked up to them, then, and Carol handed over his daughter. Her full attention was on Daryl now.

"Maggie made supper. Do you want to grab some and call it a night?"

Hell yeah, he did. He was tired and hungry. A night in with Carol in their little cabin sounded like heaven, right now.

"I'll be right back." She walked off in the direction of the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with two bowls of stew. His mouth watered at the sight.

"Carol!" Glenn called from the staircase as he descended them, a smaller bag in his hand. "This is for you." She passed the bowls to Daryl and grabbed the bag.

"What is it?" She asked and tested the weight in her hands. "It's heavy."

"You'll see." Glenn winked and Daryl got a sick feeling in his gut. What the hell did the Korean man give her?

"Well, thank you." She gave him a bright smile. "For whatever this is."

"No problem." Then he turned to Daryl with a smirk. "Enjoy." And with a wink, he disappeared into the kitchen.

Daryl couldn't help but think he was going to want to strangle the man once Carol found out what was in that bag.  
\----------------------------------------  
Two empty bowls and two full stomachs later, Carol and Daryl both sat on the couch together. Daryl had his feet on the little coffee table in front of him and Carol had her legs tucked underneath her and had her body angled towards his. This was how they spent most evenings. Sitting on the couch talking.

"Let's see what Glenn has in this bag," Carol announced and grabbed the heavy sack from the floor.

"I have a feelin' I'm gonna wanna kill him when we see what's in there," he muttered. "He was actin' fuckin' strange when he gave it to you."

"I admit he was acting a little strange, but I'm sure he didn't give me anything bad." She reached in the bag and returned with a handful of batteries. A crease appeared in the middle of her nose as she looked at them in confusion.

Placing the batteries on the table, she reached back in and came back with a large box.

A smile spread wide across her face. "A portable DVD player!" She exclaimed. "That's what all of those batteries are for!"

The sinking feeling returned.

"There's one more thing in here." She felt around in the bag. "It feels like a movie. Which would make sense, right, Daryl?"

Shit.

She pulled out the case and read the title. "The Boondock Sa-" She paused when she finally saw the two men on the cover. "Daryl, is that-?"

"No!" He snapped and looked away from her. He was going to kill that kid.

"But it looks a lot like you."

"Yeah, but it ain't me." He crossed his arms. "Already had this conversation with Short Round, earlier."

She smiled. "Let's watch it."

"Hell no."

"Please." Her blue eyes opened wide as she pleaded with him. "It could be like a date." Her voice held that teasing tone, but when he looked at her face she could tell she had been serious.

"Fine. It's a date."  
\---------------------------------------  
Carol snuggled close to his side, the player sitting in her lap. Her hand covered her mouth and a sob was muffled.

"Poor Rocco," she said quietly and watched as the brothers on the screen sobbed for their friend. Especially the one named Murphy, the one that looked exactly like him.

It was unsettling to watch the man who had his face cry and scream over the bleeding man on the floor. Had he looked like that when he had found his brother turned? Had his face contorted into those expressions?

A little while later, as the credits rolled, Carol turned to him.

"I liked it. Did you?"

He shrugged. "It was a'right." He had liked the film, but knew that if one of the men hadn't looked like him, then he would have liked it more.

"My favorite character was Murphy." She nudged him gently in the ribs. "What about you?"

He shrugged again. "I don't know."

"Come on," she turned to follow face him and rose up on her knees. "You have to have a favorite. Someone had to stick out to you."

Her face got steadily closer and he kept himself still. His mind went blank and if he had planned to tell her his favorite character, he would not have been able to remember the person's name.

When he remained silent, she decided to drop it and ask a different question.

"So," her eyes gleamed with mischief. "Our dates over, now. Do I get a kiss?"

He froze. He knew she was teasing, but he also knew she wanted this. Wanted him to finally make a move and make them a couple. It was about time he stopped being a pussy.

Reaching out, he cupped her cheek and looked into her eyes. "Only if you want me to kiss you."

Her eyes widened at how serious he was and nodded.

"A'right. He closed those last inches and finally placed a kiss on the woman in front of him. His woman. She sighed happily and returned the kiss, her hands going for his hair.

He groaned as her nails scrapped against his scalp and then wrapped an arm around her and set her in his lap. She let out a squeak of surprise and went right back to kissing him with passion.

God, he knew right then, he could kiss her forever.

Suddenly, a knock sounded on the door. It looked like forever didn't last that long.

She pulled back, her lips swollen with his kisses, hair sticking up from his hands, and climbed off his lap to answer the door. She opened it to find Glenn standing there in the darkness.

"Hey, I forgot to give you this." He handed over another DVD case.

"Thanks." Carol smiled.

"Well, Maggie's waiting for me. You two have a fun night." Then he was off running to the main house.

Carol shut the door and looked down at the movie in her hands.

"Look, Daryl!" She held it up and once again, he saw his face on the cover. "There's a second one!"


	2. Part Two

**Part Two**

Several minutes into the second movie, Daryl had already started to roll his eyes. Who the hell took showers in a barn? And Jesus, did they have to show all that? He didn't want to see two grown men's naked asses.

With a giggle, Carol pressed the pause button on Murphy's shower scene and he groaned.

"The hell, woman?!"

He averted his eyes from the screen.

"What?" She snuggled closer to his side. "I figure this is going to be the only time I'll be able to see your ass."

"You realize that ain't me, right?"

"And what a cute ass you have." Carol continued as if she hadn't even heard the man beside her speak.

"And, who says you ain't never gonna see my ass?" The words were out before he could stop them and Carol tore her eyes away from the small screen to look at him.

"Is that an offer?"

He felt his cheeks warm up. "Not right now."

"Soon?" She pressed.

"If I say soon, will you unpause the fuckin' movie?" He grumbled.

"Yep!" She smiled.

"Fine. You'll get to see it soon." He didn't even want to think about what he had just gotten himself into. It was true that him and Carol had kissed, but he wasn't sure if he was ready to be naked with her.  
\-----------------------------------  
Well, it turned out that he was ready to be naked with her after all. After the movie, he had thought they would go their separate ways; Carol to the bedroom and him to his couch. But she had other ideas.

Closing the player, she placed it safely on the coffee table and then gracefully straddled his lap. He had been momentarily caught off guard but wasn't complaining when she attached her lips to his.

Things moved fast after that. Very fast. And soon they found themselves moving together under the sheets in her bed. She writhed below him and he moaned into her ear until both of them reached their peak together.

"You know," she said, once they had caught their breaths and he had settled beside her. "I think I like your ass better than Murphy's." She turned and whispered in his ear. "And, it's all mine."  
\----------------------------------  
The next morning, the both of them took full advantage of waking up early. Usually Carol would help with breakfast and Daryl would go for a quick hunt.

"There'll still be some game out there a couple hours from now," he said as he rolled on top of her.

"And no one is probably up yet, so I don't have to start breakfast for a while." She kissed his shoulder as he buried his face in her neck.

An hour later, they finally climbed out of bed and went their separate ways. Carol to the main house and Daryl to the woods.

"Did you have fun last night?" Maggie asked when the older woman stepped into the kitchen.

Carol blushed and went straight to the stove, so the young woman wouldn't see her red face. "Yeah. You?"

"I did. Glenn brought back a portable DVD player and we watched a couple movies. It was nice to do something so normal like that." Maggie began opening cans of fruit and put them into a bowl to mix up. "I didn't know how much I missed things like TV, until last night."

"I know," she sighed. She began slicing up thin slices of the bread her and Beth had made a few days ago.

"So," Maggie sidled up next to her. "Glenn tells me that Daryl was a movie star."  
\---------------------------------  
With a belt full of squirrels and a wild turkey slung over his shoulder, Daryl strode up to the back of the house and dumped the game on the picnic table set up outside. He set his crossbow at his feet and went to work on skinning and gutting his kills.

"Hey, Norman, do you need some help?" Glenn slid into the seat next to him.

Daryl turned his head and glared at the young man sitting beside him. Glenn wore a large grin and didn't seem fazed by the death glance he was receiving.

"We ain't gonna start this shit, again." The hunter growled and kept focused to the task at hand. "My fuckin' name ain't Norman."

"I'm not convinced." Glenn reached for a nearby squirrel and set to work skinning it. "I think Daryl was just a character you were supposed to play before the world ended and you just decided to stay in character for the rest of your life."

Daryl dropped the now skinless rodent in his hands and once again looked at the man beside him. "Do you realize how stupid that jus' sounded?"

"It all makes perfect sense." Glenn threw his hands in the air and nearly lost the squirrel he held in one of them. "That man is an exact replica of you. I've heard of celebrity look-a-likes, but never have I seen anyone look that close to a celebrity."

"But that ain't me."

"Here's my theory." He settled more into his seat, all thoughts of skinning the dead animal in front of him, gone. "You were filming a movie the day the world ended. In this movie, you played some crossbow wielding redneck badass named Daryl. Things got crazy and walkers swarmed the set. You tried to escape, fell, knocked your head on something and boom you can't remember anything except the name Daryl."

"You're fuckin' crazy. How do you explain Merle, then?"

Glenn smiled. "I've thought about that, too."

"You've been doin' too much of that lately." Daryl mumbled.

The Korean man glared at him and continued. "Merle found you all unconscious and stuff. When you come too, he had already cooked up this plan that you were his brother. He tells you all these stories and since you don't remember anything of your life before, you believe him and together you become the Dixon brothers." He gave the hunter a smug grin.

Daryl stood up. "I'm done talkin' to you. You've gone fuckin' insane." He started walking away.

"You know, I'm right!" Glenn called after him. "You just don't want to admit it!"  
\----------------------------------  
The moment he walked into the farmhouse, he wanted to walk right back out. All he wanted to do was find Carol and convince her to come back to the cabin with him. Instead, he was met with Carl and Beth, both looking at him with wide eyes.

Beth held out a small notebook and pen. "Can I have your autograph, Mr. Reedus?"

"Yeah, me too!" Carl piped up. Though, he was glad the boy was gaining back some of his youth, he wanted to slap the kid.

"I ain't that fuckin' guy," he stormed past them, getting even more annoyed by the second. Did the whole fuckin' group know of his look alike?

"But Maggie showed us the DVD case with you on it and she even gave Carol a poster with you on it, too!" Beth protested behind him.

"What?" He turned on them and both of them jumped slightly. "A poster?"

"Yeah," Beth nodded her head. "Glenn gave it to her and Maggie showed all of us before giving it to Carol. She said you were a movie star. I've never met anyone famous before." She gave him a sweet smile and lifted up the notebook to him again.

He ignored it, again. "Do you know where Carol is, now?"

"She went back to your guys' cabin," Carl said from behind Beth. "Do you have any movies with you in them we can watch? Glenn brought me and Dad a portable DVD player and we can watch movies and stuff. So, do you?" He bounced up on the balls of his feet.

Why was the idea of watching him in a movie so exciting to the kid? It wasn't even fuckin' him!

He ignored both of them again and walked back out the door he had just walked through. He nearly ran into Michonne on his way out.

"Heard you were in movies," she said with a smirk.

Not her too! Daryl groaned. Out of everyone in the group, he thought she would have the most sense to not believe the crazy shit Maggie and Glenn were saying.

"You ever meet Denzel Washington? I'd sleep with that man any day."

God, everyone was going fuckin' insane!

He made it back to the cabin without running into anyone else and found Carol in her, no their, bedroom. She sat on the bed, chin in hand and was looking at something on the wall on her side of the bed.

"Whatcha looki-?" He froze. On the wall was, not one, but two posters with his face on them. One was black and white and showed a younger version of himself, no of this Norman Reedus, and some kind of prayer. The other was of the two actors looking older and wielding a gun in each hand.

"Why the hell do you have those hangin' up?" He crossed his arms angrily.

She shrugged and didn't turn around. "Figured if you ever went on any overnight hunting trips, I'd least have something of you to look at."

"You do realize that ain't me, right?" _Please,_ he begged silently. _Don't believe the bullshit Glenn's been tellin' everyone._

"I know that isn't you." He sighed in relief. "But I could always pretend it was, I suppose." She turned to him and gave him a smile.

Without another word, he crawled across the bed and settled himself behind her. He settled his legs on either side of her thighs and pulled her back to his chest.

"You know," he nibbled at her earlobe. "I was lookin' for you earlier and was gonna ask if you wanted to come back to the cabin with me. Looks like you was ahead of me." His hand slid under her shirt and he brought it up to cup her breast.

"Is this all you're going to think about now?" She moaned when his hand went underneath the bra and touched bare flesh.

"It's you're fault, you know." He kissed down her neck.

She reached back and grabbed a handful of his shaggy hair. "How is it my fault?"

"If you were-"

A loud knocking interrupted the two and caused them to jump apart.

"What the fuck?" Daryl grumbled. Carol was already at the door, answering it. From his spot in the bedroom, he couldn't see who it was but he could hear them.

"Carol, thank God, I found you!" It was Rick and he sounded upset. "Daryl's hurt. Bad."

"What?"

Daryl narrowed his eyes. The fuck? He was right here and he was just fine!

"I was walking the perimeter and I heard something in the woods. I went to check what it was and I found Daryl knocked out cold and blood was seeping through his shirt. I dragged him back to the house and Hershel is looking at him now, but you'll want to be there, too."

"But-"

"I'm right here, Rick." Daryl finally stepped out of the bedroom and stood in front of the man he considered a brother.

Rick looked at him like he was seeing a ghost. He leaned on the doorframe for support and ran a hand through his hair.

"Then, who the hell did I drag back to the house?"

"I don't know." He grabbed his crossbow and shouldered it. "But I think we should head there and see."  
\---------------------------------  
Daryl ignored the wide-eyed looks coming from Carl, Beth and Maggie as he passed them on his way to the only bedroom downstairs. Rick led the way and Carol was behind him. They reached the room Hershel and Beth slept in. Before Rick could open the door, it opened and Hershel stood in the doorway.

"Daryl's up and-" He paused when he saw Daryl standing behind Rick and Carol. "That explains a lot, then." He moved to the side and the group of three peered and saw a man that looked exactly like Daryl lying on the bed, awake.

"When I examined the wound on his chest, I noticed that he didn't have a scar on his side like I know Daryl would have from that arrow. I thought maybe it was just my old eyes finally getting to me."

"Hey, what the hell is going on?" The man finally spoke and clearly did not have the same southern accent as Daryl. "Where am I?" He looked between them, but when his eyes landed on Daryl, they widened.

"What. The. Fuck?" he muttered. "I'm definitely dreaming!" But when he tried to move, he winced from the pain. "Okay. Obviously _not_ dreaming."

"My name's Hershel," the older man crutched up the bed. "I'm the one that stitched your side there. That's Rick," he gestured with a crutch. "He's the leader of our small group. The woman there is Carol and that man over there, the one that looks like you is-"

"Daryl. I know. You kept calling me his name and seeing as he has my face, then it didn't take me long to figure out who he was."

_No, you have my face, asshole!_ He knew he had no right to yell at the guy, he just kept himself quiet and rooted in his spot.

"So, what's your name?" Rick asked.

"Norman." He looked at Daryl again. "Norman Reedus."

They all gasped, except for Daryl. He just crossed his arms and asked. "Where the hell is Short Round? I owe him a big fat 'I told you so'."

Without a word to the former actor lying in bed or the other members of his group, he walked out of the room and found the Asian man minutes later. He was setting at the kitchen table with Maggie across from him. They were speaking quietly, but when he walked in the room, they stopped.

"Well, Jackie Chan, did you meet our guest?" He crossed his arms over his chest and gave the young man a smug grin.

"I'm not Chin-"

"Oh, I'm sorry, did you not like bein' called someone you're not?"

Glenn's face went beet red. "Maggie told me Rick dragged you here from the woods, but then you walked in minutes later."

"Yep, in that room over there is the real Norman Reedus. So, you can go bug him and Beth and Carl can finally get those damn autographs."

Maggie snorted a laugh behind her hand. "They asked you for an autograph?"

"Well, what do you expect?" He snapped. "You basically told everyone I was some kind of actor."

"Daryl," a small hand slipped into his and he turned to find Carol beside him. "Are you giving these two a hard time?"

"They gave me a hard time, earlier. I'm jus' returning the favor." Suddenly he started to get dizzy and the edges of his vision were getting fuzzy.

"Daryl?" Carol's face was in right there. "Daryl?!" Her voice was panicked. "What's wrong? Daryl?!"

Everything went black.  
\---------------------------------  
"Daryl?" Someone was shaking him. "Daryl, wake up!"

He opened his eyes and saw Carol kneeling in front of him in the dark. Looking around he could tell that he was in the living room in their cabin on the couch.

"What's wrong?" His head didn't ache like he thought it would. Hadn't he fallen to the kitchen floor?

"You were having a nightmare."

"Nightmare?" He sat up.

"Yeah, you were trashing around and kept saying, 'I ain't Norman' over and over again."

Had it all been a dream? Everything?

"Why don't you go back to sleep? You have to get up soon to go on that run with Rick and Glenn."

She must be talking about the run he had in his dream. The one where they had scouted out a mall and Glenn had found that movie. That damn movie. He didn't care if there really was a Norman Reedus or not, he knew he was going to do everything in his power to make sure Glenn never found that movie.

"Um, Daryl, do you want to join me in my bed? It's more comfortable than this couch and it's bigger." She looked nervous as she asked.

Without a word, he gently cupped both her cheeks and kissed her soundly on the lips.

She pulled back and smiled. "Is that a yes?"

"No, it's a hell yes."


End file.
